SAN MARCOS -- Second-grader Brooke Eyler is giving her classmates an unusual homework assignment.

Brooke, an 8-year-old attending Palomar Elementary School in San Marcos, is asking her friends to grow their hair out during the summer, and then cut it off.

It's nothing she wouldn't do herself. Earlier this month, Brooke had about 10 inches of her straight blonde hair cut off to donate to Locks of Love, a Florida-based nonprofit group that provides hairpieces to financially disadvantaged children who have lost hair because of medical reasons.

"For a person who doesn't feel well, it will make them feel better," Brooke said about how her hair will be used.

Brooke and her mother, Laura, know how hair loss can make someone who is ill feel even worse. Laura's brother, Curt Condon, died in March 2008 of a brain tumor and lost his hair during chemotherapy treatment.

"He was a very nice guy," Brooke said about her uncle, who was 54 when he died. "I really loved him and I was really sad when I heard he had a brain tumor."

Condon was an Oceanside tennis pro and a two-time Pacific Coast Athletic Association champion who once played at the U.S. Open. Besides his prowess with a tennis racquet, he also was known as a role model to students, including several couples he performed wedding ceremonies for as an ordained minister. The father of two also was a member of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

"When he taught, it wasn't just about technique," Laura said about her brother. "You also got life lessons."

Brooke said she remembers her uncle saying he wanted to make each day count, and a few weeks ago she told her mother that she wanted to do something that would count by donating some of her hair.

"His biggest issue was when he didn't have hair," she recalled about her uncle.

Laura also remembered that her brother was bothered by his hair loss after chemotherapy treatments. While he had the strength to teach at El Camino Country Club until just weeks before his death, she said he always put on a cap because he was self-conscious about being bald.

Brooke said she was planning to tell her classmates last week about her uncle to inspire them to grow their hair for Locks of Love.

"I'm going to tell them my Uncle Curt went through a lot, and one of his biggest issues was having no hair," she said. "I want to make other people feel a little better than they did before."

Brooke's teacher, Mary Jo Martinez, said she is very proud of her student.

"She's just amazing in the classroom," she said. "She's an all-around great student in everything. She's good academically and socially. She's just a little star."

Brooke may have more than a few classmates answer her challenge. Martinez said she saw students take out rulers in class to see if they had the 10 inches required by Locks of Love after hearing about Brooke's plan.

To learn more about Locks of Love, visit the Web site LocksofLove.org.

Contact staff writer Gary Warth at 760-740-5410.